Intelligent SME.tech Issue 55 | Page 9

// LATEST UPDATES //
‘ Canada’ s Top Small & Medium Employers’ for 2025 are announced
UnionPay International and Dojo Partner to expand card acceptance across the UK
More Canadians are turning to small and medium enterprises( SMEs) for career growth, flexibility and meaningful work. Compared to larger employers, SMEs usually offer faster-paced environments where employees can take on more responsibility early in their careers, shape their roles and develop skills faster. These advantages define this year’ s Canada’ s Top Small & Medium Employers, announced in April by Mediacorp Canada, organisers of the annual
Canada’ s Top 100 Employers project.
“ Our SME winners have always provided dynamic environments where employees are in the driver’ s seat in mapping out their career paths,” said Richard Yerema, Executive Editor of the Canada’ s Top 100 Employers project.“ But what’ s changing is their ability to match larger employers in terms of benefits such as vacation allowance, mental health support and family-friendly benefits. The differences between these SMEs and the winners on our national list are becoming increasingly smaller.”
To view the winners go to www. canadastop100. com / sme /
UnionPay International( UPI), dedicated to providing a seamless global payment network, has announced a strategic partnership with Dojo, a UK leading SME payment provider. This collaboration will significantly increase UnionPay card acceptance across the UK, providing cardholders with a seamless payment experience while enabling small- and medium-sized enterprises( SMEs) to tap into a vast international customer base.
Dojo develops innovative, technology-driven solutions
that simplify transactions, empowering businesses, including major enterprises such as Pizza Pilgrims, Côte and Boxpark, in the experience economy. Through this partnership, UnionPay cardholders can now make payments at 150,000 UK merchants, primarily in the hospitality sector. At the same time, Dojo’ s merchant network will gain access to global UnionPay cardholders.
The UK’ s payment landscape is rapidly evolving.
According to PwC UK, debit card payments now dominate, accounting for 50 % of transactions, and the shift away from cash is expected to continue, reaching 7 % of total transaction volume by 2032.
Froda raises € 20 million to accelerate embedded SME finance across Europe
Embedded finance player, Froda, has secured a € 20 million investment to fuel its European expansion and provide more SMEs with seamless, data-driven financing. The Series B round was led by Incore Invest, with strong continued backing from the majority of existing investors.
The raise comes at a time when FinTech fundraising has slowed significantly, with many players struggling to attract equity. The investment underscores growing investor confidence in embedded finance as a model for scalable and sustainable FinTech growth. The € 20 million investment will be poured into scaling Froda’ s operations, onboarding new embedded finance partners and expanding into additional European markets.
“ We’ re in the middle of a pivotal growth phase for Froda and seeing strong demand from both new and existing partners across Europe. With Incore Invest’ s backing, we can accelerate our growth and scale our partnerships to continue supporting SMEs with the financing they need,” said Olle Lundin, Co-founder and CEO at Froda.
Intelligent SME. tech
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